The frustration in the voice of former Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh is evident when he speaks of the planned U.S. opposition to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ bid for United Nations’ recognition of Palestine as a non-member state.

The move, slated for this Thursday, threatens to “destroy America’s only achievement in this region,” he said by phone from Jerusalem, referring to the American training of the Palestinian security force in the West Bank.

On the heels of the success of the Iron Dome system, Israel successfully tested a new missile defense system in the Negev.

Dubbed David’s Sling, after the weapon used in the Biblical story of David and Goliath, the system is being developed jointly between the Israeli and American defense firms Rafael and Raytheon. It is designed to intercept medium to long-range missile between 70 and 300 kilometers—likely to be primarily launched from Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah, Syria and Iran.